yes dear …

30-Enero-2020 Viernes, Cozumel.

The great folks at the Humane Society of Cozumel have done a wonderful job in their seemingly endless effort to reduce the stray population. Nine years ago they euthanized 7000 dogs in 3 years – 36 months. https://www.facebook.com/HumaneCozumel/

Since then Humane Society of Cozumel has been conducting spay/neuter clinics. They have even gone out into the neighborhoods and to talk to owners and take the dogs to the shelter for surgery and then take them home afterwards.

One of their massive and free spay/neuter events is happening this weekend. We volunteered to help for a day. Massive was truly the correct adjective. The line was out the door before we arrived at 7:15AM. Show time started at 8AM. This years goal is 1,000 dogs and cats in 4 days. Volunteer doctors and vet techs came in from all around Yucatan and the United States to join the local volunteers, mostly expats.

No one was picking up dog poop after their dogs. One of the campaign leaders gave a forceful speech on the importance of cleaning up after their pets. It helped.

Dale worked transit, carrying anesthetized dogs and cats from the prep area, to surgery and then to recovery. Cats and little dogs are no-brainer to move around. One family came in with 4 German Sheppard and another big dog. Most people had little dogs and several at that.

Pets were color coded, knocked out and weighed at entry to prep rooms. Male pets were labeled with a blue color, female green and special handling (e.g. aggressive, nervous, other health issues…) bright pink. There were about ~8 prepping stations once the trachea tube had been placed by one of the vets. Cats had priority over dog.

The below pictures were take early in the morning with a cell phone. By 10AM it was beyond busy. The day kept getting more and more amazing.

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I worked in dog recovery. We cleaned the suture area to ensure it stopped bleeding and remove all traces of blood, cleaned ears, trimmed toe nails, removed the trachea tubes and as time permitted removed ticks. I was amazed at how small the spay/neuter cuts were. Microsurgery. At one time we had more than 60 dogs in the recovery area with a staffing ~15 people. Crazy busy!

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Almost all of the dogs were family pets and in reasonable condition. A couple of times transit brought in dogs that were really gross. I pretended I was too busy to accept another dog for recovery. LOL.

Dog recovery was lucky enough to be outside under a covered patio with a breeze. The cat room has closed windows and a closed door (no screen). As soon a cat started to come around they were IMMEDIATELY stuffed into their cat kennel or a pillow case.

As the pets started to stir the family team reunited pets with their families. The families sat with their pets until they were alert enough to leave. A multilingual support team managed this process, reassuring the pet owners and providing care and maintenance guidance.

The TNR (trap neutered release) round-up truck broke down last week and hasn’t yet been fixed. I can’t imagine how much more busy we would have been if the round-up had happened! I’m sure tick removal would have been tremendous.

Buenas noches

Estoy cansado (I’m tired.)

30-Enero-2020 Jueves, Cozumel.

It rained sooo much last night we could have snorkeled in the parking lot… but we wanted to go diving. So we did. I took coffee along for the ride to the marina… one tope (speed bump) later the coffee was all over me. Bad idea.

We have been doing something call ‘Discover Scuba’ which allows a non certified diver to dive with a dive master. We’ve dove four reefs. Each unique, Las Palmas reef, Palancar Gardens, Columbia reef and one I can’t remember the name of. Spectacular coral formations and endless diversity of fish. We could have been in a National Geographic Special.

At the end of today’s dive our wonder dive master Eric asked how we liked the dive. We succumbed to our wild side are going to get certified. We hope to complete the class before we leave Cozumel.

Hechos no tan divertidos (not so fun facts)

DAN Annual Diving Report 2018 Edition: A Report on 2016 Diving Fatalities, Injuries, and Incidents https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK540496/

Per diving fatality data published in Diving Medicine for Scuba Divers (2015)
– 90% died with their weight belt on.
– 86% were alone when they died (either diving solo or separated from their buddy).
– 50% did not inflate their buoyancy compensator.
– 25% first got into difficulty on the surface
– 50% died on the surface.
– 10% were under training when they died.
– 10% had been advised that they were medically unfit to dive.
– 5% were cave diving.
– 1% of rescuers died.

I wouldn’t even think of getting certified if I wasn’t confident in our instructor. Eric has dove over 3,000 times. He laughing said that he has spent more of his life under water than out of it.

Hechos Graciosos (Fun facts)

The Italian restaurant we ate in last night had ‘spaghetti al donkey’ on the menu. Buttered spaghetti. Burro is the Italian work for butter. Burro got translated to donkey on the menu!
Google ‘spaghetti al donkey’ and check out the recipes.

29-Enero-2020 Miércoles, Cozumel.

Yesterday I ranted about how LOUD it is here in San Miguel de Cozumel. Silly me I completely forgot to mention the taxis. We are marked people as tourists. Every empty taxi passing by gives a toot to see if we want a ride. Every taxi driver along the street with an empty taxi calls us to see if we want a ride. Some of the drivers are starting to recognize us so the harassment is starting to diminish. Still, there are over 750 taxis on this small island.

It’s a dogs life

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Dogs live giant kennels called a patios. Most of them are extremely neurotic. A lot of them never get let out to roam or walk on a leash. They poop and pee in their patio kennels. No wonder they are neurotic.

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Standard of living differences

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Siesta time for street dogs

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The dogs really start barking 6PM until about midnight, or MUCH later.  I guess it isn’t a significant amount more as they’ve been barking all day. It’s amazing dogs still have any vocal cords left.

At least there aren’t chicken running around here like in the Bahamas.

Along the Way

Historically in Mexico, tampons are a sensitive subject. Although most Mexican women argue that this makes them look bad, most women are either scared of them or have not heard about them. The internet is starting to change all that. Even with my American ways I was a little surprised to see the advertisement on this car. https://www.yuukicup.mx/

Hechos Graciosos (Fun facts)

Damiana, a wild shrub that grows in Mexico, was historically, homeopathicly used to increase sexual desire. Viagra au natural?

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A Mexican Inventor Created the World’s First Birth Control.
Luis Ernesto Miramontes Cardenas, a 25-year-old Mexican chemist came up with the chemical compound. He performed the first synthesis of norethisterone, which would go on to make up the main component of the first birth control pills in 1951.

28-Enero-2020 Martes, Cozumel. One thing I can say about about the city of San Miguel de Cozumel is that it is LOUD.

For starters, Jack Hammer lives next door. And he likes to play his music LOUD.

Jack Hammer also works across the street.  He starts at sunrise and works into the night Monday through Saturday. Siestas occur at irregular intervals through the day, but still there is the music. Some days there are more workers than on other days.

It’s easy to understand why buildings will still in progress 10 years from now even though the workers are here from 8AM till about 5PM. First, it’s often hotter than sin itself late morning through mid-day when they are working. Secondly, there is no incentive to complete the job. When the job is over the laborers are out of work. And third, it’s all pretty much done by hand tools. Manually carrying 5 gallon buckets of sand, cement and plaster is slow back breaking work.
Once in a while work (i.e. noise) continues waaaaaaaaaay into the night.

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The walls of the building are all made of cinder block and need to be chiseled to run electrical lines for lights and fuses. Water and sewer too. Once wired the walls are plastered up and painted.

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Beyond Jack Hammer there are the flocks of grackles, constantly barking dogs, thrumming scooters and cars, local vendors and merchants calling out, music all round from many many sources playing at full volume and then there are the propane trucks.

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Oh, yes. I forgot about the large bottle of purified water vendors. Tap water in Mexico is not drinkable. Purified water guys, if lucky enough to have a truck, drive around playing a staccato of several honks that is often followed by the call Aaaaagggguaaa! (waaaaateerrrr). Other smaller vendors pedal around on push cart tricycles or drive tuk tuks and also call out.

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Home delivery

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Along the way

Late afternoon walk

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Buenas noches

Hechos Graciosos (Fun facts)

US citizens Are the Largest Immigration Group in Mexico.

Mexican citizens make up the largest proportion of the United States’ foreign-born population. But the US citizens, on the other hand, constitute the largest immigrant group in Mexico. According to the last Census in 2010, over 750,000 US citizens live in Mexico.

Yes, it means there are more Americans immigrating to Mexico than Mexicans immigrating to the US. Kind of ironic…

27-Enero-2020 Lunes, Cozumel

Out for 7:30AM desayuno (breakfast)

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I will never be able to eat Mexican food in los Estados Unidos again. It just doesn’t taste as good as it does down here.

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Readying for Carnaval Season. I didn’t notice any pintura húmeda (wet paint) signs anywhere.

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Dale made me take the car pictures.

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I preferred the newly put up Carnaval decorations.

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Trash Day

We put our trash out before took our evening walk. The garbage truck will noisily come by in the middle of the night to collect. I imaging that is the only time they can collect as the streets are too busy during the day and it’s cooler.

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Barrels and chains

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Evening Stroll

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Hechos Graciosos (Fun facts)

WOWZAAA!! 39 cruise ships are registered to dock for this last week of January 2020 (Monday 7, Tuesday 5, Wednesday 6, Thursday 8, Friday 6, Saturday 5, Sunday 2). An estimated 117,000 people will visit Cozumel this week via the cruise ships leaving an estimated US $19.9 million dollars behind in the local economy.

26-Enero-2020 Domingo, Cozumel

Pasion Island departing from Puerto de Abrigo.

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The sail boat ride was pretty nice but Passion Island was a bust. The water was cold and too murky to do any snorkeling from weather earlier in the week.

Not your average Sunday night in the park

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PreCarnaval introduction of the candidates. Anticipation is building. Carnaval is 19 al 26 de febrero (February 19 to 26 )

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The show begins!

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Presenting the Master of Ceremonies

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Introduction of the last years royalty

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Presentation of Candidates (I didn’t get all of them). They all come out, do a little dance and give a little speech.

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Hechos Graciosos (Fun facts)

Mexico has 68 languages that are officially recognized, but there are even more spoken by smaller communities around the country.
Spanish is the national language of Mexico and the most spoken language in Mexico. In fact, Mexico is the most populated Spanish-speaking country in the world.

25-Enero-2020 Sábado Cozumel. Un dia lento (A slow day)

So much for the new Teva sandals. Dale’s only had them for a couple of months. It’s a bit challenging to return them from here.

Buying pegamento (glue) to fix the sandal. It is nice to be within walking distance to your local ferretería la plaleria (hardware store).

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Dia de lavado (Laundry Day)

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Buenas noches

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Hechos Graciosos (Fun facts)

If you think my Spanish is good… HA! I’ve been using the Google English to Spanish translator.

Dale and I are trying to try to learn one Spanish word a day. Cerveza and tequila don’t count because we already knew those words.  Dale’s word for today is caliente and Mary’s word for today is canasta. So, between the two of us we can now say canasta caliente or in English ‘hot basket.

I should have paid closer attention 40+ years ago in my high school Spanish classes.  Sorry Señor Landwehr. (Gee I hope I remember your name correctly. I probably should have paid closer attention to that too).

24-Enero-2020 Viernes Cozumel. We bought day passes to an all inclusive beach.

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Breakfast was first on our agenda

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Snorkeling at Paradise Beach was a bust. It a huge grassy area with no structure for animals. A few species of starfish here and there. Fish around the occasional cement mooring blocks and a very rare rock.

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We were kicked out at 4:30PM when Paradise Beach closed so we went to Sunsets Restaurant to watch the sunset.

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We were kicked out of 2 places in one day. A personal best for me.

Hechos Graciosos (Fun facts)

Mexicans sure ain’t lazy. It’s quite the contrary. They work the longest average hours in the world. An average citizen of Mexico works 2,246 hours a year, or 43.2 hours a week. Many Mexicans work up to 48-50 hours on average per week. Other countries that make to the top five in this category include Costa Rica, South Korea, Greece, and Chile. Source: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

Mexicans working in the U.S. send $2 billion every month to their families in Mexico. This is a whopping amount as it nearly amounts to 3% of the country’s economy.

I can certainly attested to the diligence of the local people. Many of the local stores open early and are open late into the evening, staffed with the same people six days a week.

23-Enero-2020 Jueves Cozumel.

We are off to Playa del Carmen

Ferry terminal

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Leaving Cozumel. Love being on a boat!

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Coming into Playa del Carmen

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Playa del Carmen, a.k.a the Woodbury of Mexico. If you want to shop you’ll find it on Calle Quinta Avenida (5th Avenue). It has everything brand name stores, high end boutique, convenience stores and department stores on the south end to smaller tourist stores and markets as you wander north. (Dale bought shorts at Old Navy. We won’t need to find Walmart now.)

The pedestrian walkway is over three miles long. There are so many stores on this street you have to wonder how they all survive. Every store has almost the same thing every other store has.

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Couldn’t help myself with the next two pictures …

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Humming bird – Sure I paid too much but I didn’t care.

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and just around the corner….

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We needed to stop for refreshments and lunch. The restaurant we stopped at is actually in the picture above on the right behind the greenery.

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Return trip along al playa.

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Sand bagging

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Meanwhile back in Cozumel

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Bugs

Es total no mas. I’m done with Bugs. My camera hand still twitches though when one drives by. I’m probably done with boats too, at least for a while.

Buenas noches

Equal opperunity.

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Hechos Graciosos (Fun facts)

Playa del Carmen. The ancient Maya used the beaches of Xaman Ha, Playa’s Mayan name meaning “waters of the north” as a resting point to prepare their massive canoes for the 30 mile trek to the Island of Cozumel.

Cozumel was first settled by the Mayans in the 1st millennium AD. At that time it was sacred to Ix Chel, the Moon Goddess, aged jaguar goddess of midwifery and medicine.  Because moon’s association with fertility and procreation, temples built here were a place of pilgrimage, especially by women desiring fertility.

22-Enero-2020 Miércoles, Cozumel. First mission of the day was to once again hit the cash machine. 6th time in a row ….. the cash machine is empty.

Time to check out a section of town we have not yet walked.

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Panteón San Miguel A beautiful old cemetery.

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Bugs Today’s count: 8 Total Count: 51

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Almost Bugs

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Boats

Murals

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Mis nuevos amigos (My new friends)

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Evening walk

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Buenas noches

Hechos Graciosos (Fun facts)

Yucatan was named after a misunderstanding.
The name of the Peninsula resulted from confusion between the Mayans and Spanish conquistadors. According to a local legend, one of the explorers asked a local about the name of the peninsula. The local replied: “Ma’anaatik ka t’ann, which means ‘I don’t understand you’”, but the Spaniards thought he replied with the name of the place.

21-Jan-2020 Martes, Cozumel. Once again we walked over to the cash machine at the bank and it was empty. 5th time in a row. There must have been over 20 people in line in the bank waiting for a cashier. Oh well, we still had a few pesos left.

Onward to Sam’s Club. We know they take credit cards.

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Sam’s Club

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Street Dogs

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BTW I signed up to help at the Cozumel Humane Society free clinic event to spay and neuter family pet dogs and cats. Their goal is 1,000 pets. More to come…

Cozumel Meet Up is an expats and visitors group that meets every Tuesday. Today it was at the Cozumel Rum Company, a little over a mile away.

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Bugs Today’s count: 12 Total Count: 43
The Volkswagen Beetle was discontinued in its native Germany in 1978, but production continued in Mexico for an additional 25 years. And so one of Germany’s most famous automotive designs has become a Mexican icon.

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Just for a little variety …. How do you feel about boats?

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Buenas noches

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My ‘dogs’ (feet) are tired. We put on a lot of miles today.

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Hechos Graciosos (Fun facts)

When Spanish Conquistador Hernan Cortés arrived in 1519, the Aztecs believed he was their returning god, Quetzalcoatl, and offered him the drink of the gods: hot chocolate. Cacao was a highly valued commodity in pre-Hispanic Mexico

20-Jan-2020 Lunes, Cozumel. Tough day for Mary. She left her camera at la casa. At least she remembered she had her teléfono móvil (cell phone) midday for a couple of pictures….

We have friends! Breakfast was at Sunset with new friends Linda and Dennis. They are renting a car so we jumped in the back seat and drove around the island with them. The waves and water were spectacular.

I forgot to take a picture of Linda and Dennis. I’ll sneak up and get a picture of them next time we get together.

Bugs 6 for today. Total Bug count is now at 31. And two got away 🙁
Thanks Linda for stopping the car so I could chase these down.

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Buenas noches

Hechos Graciosos (Fun facts)

The Chihuahua, named after a Mexican city, is the smallest dog breed in the world. Relative to their bodies, Chihuahuas have the biggest brain in the dog world.
DNA studies show the Chihuahua has European origins; historians believe the breed was brought to Mexico by Chinese merchants. Archaeological finds indicate the Chihuahua has Mexican origins and is a descendant of the Techichi, an ancient breed dating back to the Toltec civilization.

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Today we have been married for 35 years and one day. Yesterday was our wedding anniversary.

18-Jan-2020 Domingo, Cozumel.
Paradox: a situation, person, or thing that combines contradictory features or qualities.

San Miguel, Cozumel is a paradox. The disparity between the poor and the rich is quite large. Intriguingly the two reside intermingled in many neighborhoods.  We are frequently told personal security is not an issue and to just be situational aware. We’ve walked all over San Miguel from the downtown along the water east to 65^th Ave, south to north and never felt unsafe. However, as I look around home security is everywhere from the wrought iron gates to the razor wires and high voltage electrical fences on perimeters.

Home Security

Designer Glass

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Barbed Wire, Razor Wire and Spikes

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Traditional Security – Thorned hedges

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And then there are the dogs for security. That’s a whole new topic for another time.

Disparity – My eyes see so much more than I will let my camera will show.

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The middle income and more well off.

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Bug count: 5 Total count: 25

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Niñas

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Murals

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The start of new murals

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Buenas noches

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Hechos Graciosos (Fun facts)

Mexico’s Real Name is Not Mexico
Mexico’s real name is the United States of Mexico (Estados Unidos Mexicanos). The country is divided into 31 states, plus the Federal District.

The Capital of Mexico Wasn’t Mexico City Until 2016
The majority of people have always thought that the capital of Mexico is Mexico City. The actual capital was Distrito Federal (DF) – the Federal District, In 2016, the city officially changed its name for CDMX (Ciudad de Mexico). The earliest printing press in North America was used in 1539 in Mexico City.

Cozumel is in the Mexican state of Quintana Roo.
Quintana Roo is located on the eastern part of the Yucatán Peninsula and includes Cancún, the islands of Cozumel and Isla Mujeres, and the towns of Bacalar, Playa del Carmen and Akumal, as well as the ancient Maya ruins of Chacchoben, Cobá, Kohunlich, Muyil, Tulum, Xel-Há, and Xcaret. The Sian Ka’an biosphere reserve is also located in Quintana Roo.

18-Jan-2020, Cozumel – Hoy es Sábado, dia de mercado. (Today is Saturday, maket day.) Once again we were off by 8:00 AM.

Hardware store

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El Mercado Municipal (Central Market). This is a primary market for the locals.

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Off to the shops near Parque Benito Juarez for coffee.

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Mary first had to stop and buy uno sombrero.

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A pequeña amount of marital discord was displayed during the sombrero transaction. I wanted the hat. It was simple as that. Dale started point out that there was a small amount of dirt or bird poop on it. I didn’t care I WANTED THE HAT. He kept on pointing out the bird poop. On and on and on. He wouldn’t shut up! I was getting angrier and angrier …… I WANTED THE HAT.   So he bought it for me.

Today’s Lesson – Pointing out bird poop is bartering down the hat, NOT intended to piss off your wife.
Muchas gracias Dale. Lo siento. (I am sorry.)

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We are getting the hang of it. After our mid-day siesta we ventured out to pick-up Dale’s phone from the repair shop and stop at the cash machine. Failed at both. The cash machine was empty for the forth try in three days and the phone part now won’t be in until martes (Tuesday).

Our late afternoon stroll wasn’t a total loss. There is always something interesting to see.

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Today’s Bug count: 12 Add the 12 to the 8 from yesterday for a 2-day total of 20. (I don’t retake their pictures if I’ve already taken their picture)

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Murals along the way

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Following up from last Thursday ….
Our brilliant idea failed. Courtesy of the Trump Mexican policy it is no longer possible to take a cruise liner from Mexico to the United States. MSC Cruises closed down their local offices last year they were no longer able to operate out of Cozumel.

Buenas noches

17-Jan-2020 Friday Cozumel – We were off walking very early to Grand Park Royal hotel to see an 8:30AM presentation on Royal Holiday Resorts.

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We really liked what we saw in the presentation and were very, very close to becoming a members. It was a good value but we just couldn’t figure out how to make it fit in our life style. We’ll reconsider in 3 years.

The Grand Park Royal hotel has the largest palapa (thatched roof) that I have ever seen in my entire life!

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Homeward bound. Sunsets restaurant is becoming one of our favorite places to rest and watch the world.

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Happy hour ended at 3:00 PM. Nos fuimos. (We left.)

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México tiene muchos Bugs. (Mexico has a lot of Bugs.) These pictures are just from walking around today.

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Hermosas Casas (beautiful houses)

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Buenas noches

16-Jan-2020 Thursday Cozumel – Brillante idea! What if we took a cruise ship back to Florida the end of February instead of flying back to Florida? Search the internet or walk to the International Cruise Terminal? But of course, walk to the terminal. Today we were off to an early start at 8:00AM. We were NOT walking gringo hours (mid-day) again.

Via Avenida Rafael E. Melgar it is 3.7 km (2.3 miles) walk to International Cruise Terminal .

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International Cruise Terminal of Cozumel

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It was 4 hours later, noon when we returned home for our siesta.  Dale’s knees were barking at him for the long walk.   For the second time today I thought I should have married a younger man; but I wasn’t thinking about knees back then.

Buenas noches

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15-Jan-2020 Wednesday Cozumel. México no ha sido barato para nosotros (Mexico has not been cheap for us.) AT&T kindly let me know that I had exceeded my limit phone limit and they were cutting me off now that my bill was over $500.00 USD.

While I was trying to straight out my AT&T plan Dale dropped his phone cracking the screen and messing up the LED display.  Dale searched the internet and found repair shop open 9AM-9PM with good reviews down Avenida Pedro Joaquin Coldwell (30th Ave) a little over a mile away. Like any true Minnesotan we first had to drink our coffee and discuss the weather before heading out shortly after 10:30AM.

Along the Way. Avenida Pedro Joaquin Coldwell (30th Ave)

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This is a lovely little, festive girls clothing store. The dresses are made sewn right here in the back of the store

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The cell phone repair store was closed when we got there. Thinking they had gone for lunch we decided to explore a little more and continued north on Avenida Pedro Joaquin Coldwell (30th Ave), east on Calle 8, south on Octobre Norte (65 Ave) then east on Transversal de Cozumel. One big giant square …. 4 MILES

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Today’s lesson – Only really stupid tourists walk around in the heat of mid-day. Stay en su casa and take a siesta. After a much needed siesta and waiting till the sun started going down about 6:00PM, we headed back to the phone repair shop.

Thankfully the evening walk back was much cooler.

Auto and motor cycle detailing shop down the street from Casa Cereza.

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Buenas Noches

14-Jan-2020 Tuesday Cozumel – a.k.a. Day four on our own.

Mark and Tanya the Terrific gave us a crash course before they left. Most of the locals communicate through WhatsApp and Facebook. There are some great Facebook groups that they recommended:
* Cozumel 4 You
* Cozumel4All (Without RULES)
* Meetup Cozumel
* and most importantly Taxis Cozumel

Dale, with his innate sense of direction is all over this city. Me, not so much. We’ve started to carve out sections of the city by walking the perimeters of major streets /calles, then diagonally, stair stepping through them the following days.

BIG LESSON NUMBER 1 – All the streets calles south of Avenido Benito Juarez are odd numbered. All the calles north of Avenido Benito Juarez (aka Transveral de Cozumel) are even numbered.

BIG LESSON NUMBER 2 – There is a reason people in the Latin American countries take a siesta en la tarde (afternoon). It’s HOT and muggy.
Take your walks temprano en la mañana (early morning) or tarde después (late afternoon).

Meet Up Cozumel

The Meetup Cozumel was at the Hemingway lounge and restaurant which is about a 40 minute walk away. Dale wanted to catch a taxi to our first event so we didn’t arrive sweaty and smelly. This time I was able to master Taxis Cozumel. The first time I tried to get a taxi I put in the wrong address. Smart guy. He still found us.

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We walked the 3.3 km (2 miles) back to Casa Cereza. We arrived home sweaty and smelly.

Buenas noches

13-Jan-2020 Monday Cozumel – The grocery stores were filled with ‘King Cakes’ when we first arrived. Epiphany is over and the decorations are coming down and King’s cakes/Epiphany Cake (roscón de reyes/pastel de epifanía) are no longer being sold. Dang I should have bought one.

The  rosca de reyes in is traditionally eaten on January 6, during the celebration of the Día de los reyes magos (Epiphany or the “Day of the Three Wisemen”). The roscón de reyes has an oval shape to symbolize a crown.

A baby Jesus figurine is placed inside the cake. Whoever finds it must take it to the nearest church on February 2, Día de la candelaria (Candlemas Day), which celebrates the presentation of Jesus in the Temple. Whoever finds the baby Jesus figurine in their piece of cake usually agrees to host a party on  Candlemas Day.

Municipal De Cozumel

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I had to watch this guy take down the star at the top of the tree…….

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Make sure you blow out the above picture to see how the ladder is positioned.

The next main event is Carnival February 19-26. We can already hear the crews starting to practice in the local squares.

BTW… Where did you watch the Kansas City and Texas game last Sunday?

Life is good. La vida es buena.

11-Jan-2020 Saturday Cozumel – I decided to pick up the blog again.  Life is just too interesting to go without comment….. Rather than a daily blog like I did on The Loop, this one is most-likely going to be irregular thoughts at irregular times. The internet infrastructure throughout much of Cozumel is not strong enough to meet the demand. Service is sporadic.

Casa Cereza

We are staying at Casa Cereza, my cousin Mark Kirschenman’s place on Cozumel, until the end of February. Appropriately named. Cereza is Spanish for cherry and Mark’s last name is cherry in German.

We arrived on Tuesday January 7. Mark and his terrific wife Tanya where here until Saturday morning and showed us around. The first thing I learned is that the name of the town is not Cozumel. It is San Miguel. May all my lessons be this easy.

On our own…

We made it to Dick’s Dive to catch the Vikings game.

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An $8 coozie for the beer es mucho nessicario. The cozies come with a mystery free drink inside. Dale’s mystery free drink was a shot of tequila.

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Buenas noches